Anyone following my research knows of my desire to have the 'Sauniere Messages' Radiocarbon tested to determine if they
dated to the time of Sauniere and, therefore, possibly genuinely written by Sauniere. Of course, there was always that chance the results would
show a more modern date (post Sauniere), and indicate that they are a hoax perpetrated by person/s unknown. But the Bloodline team
were also eager to find out, and, although I would have preferred to save the results for my forthcoming book, the results are now
shown here.

The Sample

A sample from the 'Sauniere Message 1' was taken and sent to the Oxford University Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit some weeks ago.

I was planning to take the sample from here as it was the location that had the most ink present.

Original Proposed Sample Area

The problem with this was that it would ruin the message, and on the opposite side of the paper was located the 'Sauniere' signature, which would have been cut out from the 'n' to the 'e'. That was a sacrifice I wasn't willing to make.

Opposite side of the message area that would be removed

I contacted Oxford to see how small a sample I could get away with and I was informed that only a very small sample would be necessary. (approx. 1cm square) This was good news as I would be able to take a less destructive sample from around the edge. But to ensure there was enough of a sample to do the tests, I sent a slightly larger piece so it could be trimmed as necessary. Oxford also informed me that they could not do a test on the ink alone as there was no way they would be able to separate the ink from the paper, but any ink present on the sample when tested would influence the result. So if the ink was modern and the paper was older (or vice
versa) then the test would pick up on this and so alter the dating result to reflect the most modern of the two.

Paper/ink Sample taken from Message 1

(The above image was sent to Oxford for comparison confirmation of the sample sent)

Proposed Possible Sample Choices for Carbon Testing with 1 being the Testing Sample - The ink is present on both sides

There was a delay in getting the result as the machine they used for the Radiocarbon test broke down and took some time to repair. The delay caused a backlog of the many samples Oxford had been sent for testing, including mine. With the 'Sauniere Message' sample taking its place in the queue it seemed a long wait until it finally arrived, but the wait was well worth it. The results are shown below.

Radiocarbon Test Results

The Radiocarbon test results are received in laminated form so they can not be tampered with or altered.

The results show there is a 95.4% probability that the 'Sauniere Message 1' dates before 1919.

So the dates of 1867 - 1919, of which there is the highest probability of it being correct, with 51.8%, means that Sauniere, who died in 1917, could have used this paper/ink to write these messages.

Abbé Bérenger Saunière was first appointed parish priest of Rennes-le-Château in 1885 and he died in 1917. Rennes-le-Chateau Timeline

All of the 3-part messages are on identical paper and written with identical ink, suggesting that all of these three messages have the same date.

And though this is not absolute proof that they are by Sauniere, I doubt if any test could positively prove this 100%, but when this Radiocarbon test is added to the other test results, the circumstantial evidence soon mounts up that Sauniere could have been responsible for their creation:

the handwriting analysis by Emma Bache concluding that the 'Sauniere Messages' handwriting have certain similarites with Sauniere's handwriting and so could have been written by him.

apart from the the two anomalies in the message 1 signature, the rest of it corresponds with Sauniere's, and if my research is correct, the anomalies were done for a reason. This is explained in full in my forthcoming book, Lost Tomb of the Knights Templar

the message 2 signature matches exactly with the known samples of Sauniere's signatures, some of which were kindly supplied by Antoine Captier.

the glass vial, found in the chest by following clues on one of the messages, being the correct size to fit in the secret compartment of the baluster now owned by Antoine Captier. The Bigou Document was found in this glass vial. The Bloodline producers had arranged a meeting with Antoine at his home in Carcasonne. We wanted to see if the glass vial would fit into the secret compartment discovered by his grandfather. After showing Antoine and Claire the glass vial and parchment, they were as keen as we were to see if it fit into the small, secret compartment. Unfortunately Antoine had glued it in place some years earlier, and even some heavy hits with a hammer and chisel would not free it. However, when held alongside the baluster, the vial certainly appears to be the correct size, and Antoine and Claire, who know the size of the compartment better than anyone, were confident that it would fit the space. They even remarked that it could possibly be the very same glass vial his grandfather had found in the church, which he then handed over to Sauniere. Read full article here.

The glass vial, cup and anointing Jar have all been verified as genuine 1st century relics.

The Cup, Anointing Jar, glass Vial and Bigou Document, and coins, were all discovered by following the clues on the 'Sauniere Messages' which have now been positively dated to the time of Sauniere.

Of all the 'discoveries' in the Rennes-le-Chateau Mystery, no one has ever subjected their findings to so much scrutiny by experts and
had so many tests carried out. Not only that, but all of our tests have come back positive. Not one of them points to the finds being
fakes, but the exact opposite, all genuine. No other Rennes-le-Chateau researcher who has claimed they have discovered something
has done likewise - I can only assume they are scared of the results!

There has been a lot of talk by certain individuals out to discredit the Bloodline film and my discoveries. They have said, without even seeing the originals, that "the messages look too new." One even suggested that the paper looked too modern - only a year old and that the ink is not ink but felt tip pen :-) The carbon dating test now proves them wrong and that the documents are almost 100 years old, predating Sauniere's death.

I have been accused of faking these documents which is complete nonsense. If I had wanted to do such a thing, I can assure you I could have done a better looking job than these 'Sauniere Messages'. I would certainly not have used red ink and I would have 'aged' the papers with tea or coffee to make them look like other, so called, 'document discoveries' banded about as genuine when they have so obviously been 'aged' - they look more like 1000 years old than a 100. But, funny as it sounds, this is the 'look' that many Rennes-le-Chateau researchers and enthusiasts expect to see on any documents found? You only have to look at genuine 100 year old documents, books, etc. to see this is not the case. Neither are they brittle as one person said they should be, adding they would fall to dust when handled - what a ludicrous statement. They are only 100 years old, not 2000. It is quite amazing at some of the silly statements people will say in the attempt to debunk something or somebody they don't agree with.

I believe because there has been no attempt to falsely age the 'Sauniere messages' adds to their credibility.

Bloodline is doing so well certain cinemas are extending for an extra week.

BLOODLINE continues to have success at the box office as it is scheduled to hold for an additional week at the Monica 4-Plex in Santa Monica, giving fans another week to see this thought provoking film. Gaining momentum in Southern California, the South Coast Village in Santa Ana has announced they will begin running the film starting Friday, June 6.

We are currently working on releasing BLOODLINE in the following cities: Chicago IL, Phoenix AZ, Sedona AZ, Portland OR, Dallas TX, Minneapolis MN, and Seattle WA. If you live near one of those cities, start posting on local websites and blog and let your friends know about this must-see film!

Below is the general explanation details sent out with every radiocarbon test and have nothing to do with the Radiocarbon results above. I have included it here as it is mentioned on the Radiocarbon results as a accompanying sheet and I do not want to be accused of leaving something out.

Explanation of radiocarbon results

QAP 14/3 Version 2

Issued 28/3/2006

Please Note

A radiocarbon determination is a measure of the amount of radiocarbon in a sample. While any organism is alive it continues to incorporate radiocarbon from the atmosphere. Once it has died the amount gradually declines because of radioactive decay.
Measurements of radiocarbon concentration are usually expressed in terms of a notional age, in numbers of years before 1950. For example, the radiocarbon result 1000±35BP indicates that the notional age is 1000 years with a standard uncertainty of 35 years. This notional age is calculated on the simplistic assumption that the amount of radiocarbon in the atmosphere has always been the same. This is not quite the case and so for anything other than a very rough indication of age the measurement must be calibrated.
Calibration is performed by comparing the radiocarbon measurements on the sample to those made on material (usually tree rings) of known age. This comparison allows one to determine the possible calendar age of the sample. An example calibration is shown here:

The main elements of this plot are:

the radiocarbon determination itself shown on the left hand axis

the measurements on known age material shown as the uneven double line the likelihood of different possible ages of the sample shown as the solid black distribution - from this you can see that the most likely date is just after AD1000

The range of possible ages is also shown for two different levels of confidence. We can be 68% sure that the sample dates to between AD988 and AD1036 but there is a reasonable chance (32%) that it is older or younger than this. However we can be 95% certain that it dates either to the period AD960 to AD1060 or (much less likely) the period AD1080 to AD1160. The values given within the brackets give the relative likelihood of the individual ranges.

Due to the outstanding success in NEW YORK CITY & LOS ANGELES, we are very pleased to report that the film is opening in more cinemas over the coming weeks in PASADENA, CA, in NEWPORT BEACH, California, in YELM, Washington State in BELLINGHAM, Washington State, in PORTLAND, Oregon in DALLAS, Texas, in TEMPE, Arizona and in SEDONA, Arizona. Please click on the THEATER icon on the Home Page to get exact details, and if you live in those cities go to the GET INVOLVED page, download the flyers & posters and help spread the word.

And as we have said before, if you want Bloodline to play in your town, send us and email, give us the name of the town and your local cinema details and we’ll see what we can do. Better Still !!! contact the cinema yourself and tell them you want to see Bloodline playing there !! The best marketing is by word of mouth.

In addition the film was screened to buyers from around the world at the Cannes Film Festival, and the first round of distribution deals are being negotiated with Scandinavia, the United Kingdom, Poland, Brazil, Japan, Germany, Korea, Australia, Canada, Indonesia, France and Italy. We will give you more details on release dates in each territory as soon as we know it.

Fox & Friends

Bruce Burgess appears on Fox and Friends with a Vatican spokesperson on live satellite feed from Rome